Strength in Numbers
by Jo. R
Summary: A gang tries to take revenge after one of their own is arrested. Abby/Gibbs/Tony friendship, written for TaylorGibbs as part of the NFA Help Haiti charity drive.


Title: Strength in Numbers

Author: Jo. R (driftingatdusk)

Rating: FR-15

Pairing: None

Category: Friendship (Abby/Gibbs/Tony), drama, hurt/comfort

Spoilers: None.

Summary: NFA Help Haiti fic for TaylorGibbs. A gang seeks revenge for the imprisonment of one of their own.

****

Court was her least favourite place to go, even more so if the team were involved in a fresh investigation and couldn't join her. Fortunately for Abby Sciuto, Forensic Specialist with NCIS, the case she'd been called to give evidence in had also required the testimony of two of her favourite people, Special Agents Leroy Jethro Gibbs and Anthony 'Tony' DiNozzo.

She sat in the passenger seat of the car, gazing out of the window to hide her smile as Tony once again lamented his ability to call shotgun before her. He was like a kid, she thought with affection, a big, petulant kid who hadn't got his own way.

"Every time, Abs, you do it every time," Tony complained, tapping a foot against the back of her chair in protest, his arms folded over his chest. "Just once you could let me win and get there first."

"Where would be the fun in that?" Abby replied, unable to hold keep silent for long. She glanced at Gibbs, saw the telltale glimmer of an amused grin and took it as a sign that their arguing wasn't, as of yet, bothering him. Turning in her chair, she stuck her tongue out at the Special Agent sitting on the backseat. "Maybe next time you'll be quicker."

"Maybe next time I'll just sit in the front regardless," Tony returned, lips twisting. His eyes sparkled, though, just as brightly as hers.

They were both feeling a little hyper, triumphant in the knowledge that their case had been solid and that the bad guy was going to be serving a lot of time for a string of murders he'd had committed.

Marcus De Lang was a senior member of a DC gang. He'd sold drugs to a group of young naval officers and orchestrated the murders of three of them when they'd failed to pay their debts promptly. Through the agents' investigation and the forensic evidence Abby had found, they'd been able to secure a conviction for two of the murders, placing him at the scene with the murder weapon.

His gang had been vocal in their disgust with the sentencing, muttering threats and shooting dark looks at the trio of NCIS employees who sat in the courtroom, satisfied as their leader was led away in handcuffs.

"You're just not fast enough, Tony," Abby gloated with a wicked grin. "You got distracted by the pretty blond in the short skirt on the courthouse steps." She clucked her tongue in disapproval, her smile growing wider when she thought she heard Gibbs stifle a chuckle. "You're so easy to beat. How McGee fails to do it, I'll never know."

Tony glared at her, unable to deny her claims. The blond in question had been hot, and he'd been wondering whether to go over and talk to her when Gibbs had slapped the back of his head and Abby had made her gleeful claim on the front passenger seat. "Boss! Abby's picking on me!"

"You make it easy, DiNozzo," Abby retorted before Gibbs could answer.

"I'm saying nothing," Gibbs said after a short pause, glancing briefly in the mirror, hiding a smirk at Tony's crestfallen expression. His smirk slipped when something else in the mirror caught his attention, his brow furrowing as he looked in his side mirror to confirm his suspicions. "You both buckled in?"

Abby checked her seatbelt instinctively. "Yes."

"Yeah, Boss." Tony turned in his seat, staring out of the back window. "Looks like trouble."

"Looks like," Gibbs echoed quietly.

A frown on her face, Abby twisted to see the black four-by-four get a little too close for comfort. "Isn't that De Lang's car?"

"Yep." Gibbs' hands tightened on the wheel, his foot pressing on the gas pedal with just a little more pressure. He was both thankful that there weren't any other cars on the road to get involved in the situation and kicking himself for deciding on a lesser known shortcut between the courthouse and the Navy Yard. At least with other cars around, the gang might've had the common sense not to try anything. "Keep facing the front, both of you."

They did as he said, neither willing to disobey a direct Gibbs order. The good-humoured, light-hearted atmosphere disintegrated into one fraught with tension and Abby clasped her hands together in her lap, her knuckles white.

"It'll be okay, Abs," Tony reassured her from the back seat. "It's just scare tactics; they won't have the guts to try anything serious."

The sensation of their car being shunted forward contradicted his claim. Gibbs muttered a curse under his breath and Tony reached out to put a hand on Abby's shoulder as the car jerked forward again despite Gibbs attempts at flooring the gas and getting some distance between them.

Anxiously watching Gibbs out of the corner of her eye, Abby lifted a hand to cover Tony's where it rested against her shoulder, a gasp escaping her as the four-by-four behind hit them again, forcing her forward, her seatbelt cutting into her.

"You okay, Abby?" Gibbs' voice was rough, his gaze switching between the road in front and the car behind.

"Sure," Abby murmured, her voice a little fearful. "Don't worry about me, Gibbs, I'll be—"

There was a loud bang and the car skidded. Someone cried out – Abby thought it might've been her – and the car spun, sliding across the road to the other side. Another bang, and it flipped over once before sliding down the small bank into the ditch below.

****

Blood from a gash in his forehead ran down his face and stung his eyes. Tony blinked it away, kicking the door of the car open, his teeth clenched against the pain that through his foot and up his leg at the action.

He climbed out of the car and around to the passenger door, yanking it open just as Abby began to stir. He watched her green eyes grow wide and panicked and only just managed to put a hand over her mouth to hush her before she cried out.

On the road above them, the sound of car tires screeching to a halt told him they had to move – fast.

"They're going to come back, Abby," he told her as quietly as he could, studying her intently to see if she was hurt. There was blood on one side of her face and she was favouring one arm, the other cradled against her chest as he pulled at her seatbelt. "Can you walk?"

Abby nodded silently, reluctant to speak. Her eyes were bright with unshed tears and she turned her head to look at their silent boss in the same moment he did. Gibbs hung from his seatbelt, his eyes closed, his body limp. "Gibbs..."

"Shh, Abs. We'll get him out." Tony eased her out of the car, holding her as her feet found purchase on the damp grass of the bank. He held her hand and led her around the car, to where Gibbs was. Together, they pulled open the door as soundlessly as possible, both crowding the small space it left to check on the unconscious man. "You're gonna have to help me carry him," Tony murmured, doing his best to keep his own voice calm and not betray the panic that welled inside him. "We need to get away from here, and fast."

Again, she gave him a silent nod and moved to stand a little to the side, giving him room to get in and unfasten Gibbs' seatbelt, steeling herself and her aching arm for the extra weight she would have to carry.

Tony grunted and muttered something that sounded like an apology under his breath as he manhandled Gibbs out of the car, his face paling at the pressure on his injured leg. He was relieved when Abby stepped up to help him, taking comfort in the determined expression on her face. He knew she was hurting, too, the pale cheeks and thin white line of her lips showed him that even if the arm she held so gingerly didn't.

Together, though, they were responsible for taking care of Gibbs, for keeping him safe and getting him out of harm's way before De Lang's men figured out how to climb down the slippery slope safely.

"Head for the trees," Tony ordered, his voice soft. "We can take cover there."

Abby nodded and they set off, the dead weight of their boss and friend between them.

****

They'd been walking for an hour or so when Gibbs began to stir, a low groan alerting his companions to his changing state of awareness. Exchanging a look over his head, Tony and Abby lowered him carefully to the ground, both crouching beside him expectedly when his eyelids began to move.

His blue eyes, usually so bright, were dulled with agony and a thin layer of sweat broke out across his brow almost as soon as he woke up. His eyes moved from one anxious face to the next, confusion giving way to dawning realisation as the memories slowly returned to his pain-clouded mind.

It took two attempts at speaking, his voice hoarse when he finally got it to work. "Where are we?"

"I'm not sure, Boss. We've been walking away from the road for about an hour." Tony glanced over his shoulder uneasily. "De Lang's men were following us but we've not heard anything from them in a while. They might've given up."

"Tony's phone's broken," Abby chimed in, her eyes studying Gibbs' face intently. "Yours must've fallen out in the car and I've got no signal on mine. We thought we'd keep going until we got a signal, then call Ziva and McGee so they can come and get us."

Gibbs nodded and tried to sit up, wincing when the action caused a spark of agony to shoot through his chest. Two sets of hands pushed him back down gently. "You should go on ahead. Both of you," he added harshly when they shared another look over him. "I'm armed; I'll be able to defend myself."

"In this condition?" Tony arched a sceptical eyebrow. He sighed at the determined expression that arranged Gibbs' features and held up a hand. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

His eyes narrowing, his vision blurred, Gibbs couldn't quite make out whether it was two or three and wondered if he'd get lucky with a guess.

"We're not leaving you," Abby interrupted before he could even attempt it. "As much faith as I have in your ability to look after yourself, Gibbs, you're not exactly in a great position to argue with us." She gave him a stern look and the duo were soon locked in a battle of wills, one that under other circumstances would've amused Tony to no end. Eventually, Gibbs looked away with a defeated sigh. "Tony's in charge," Abby continued in a softer voice, lifting her eyes to meet Tony's gaze, the confidence and faith she had in the younger agent flooring him for a moment. "And I'll help him however I can," she finished, looking back down at Gibbs. "We'll take care of you, Gibbs. We promise."

A ghost of a smile flickered on his mouth before a grimace chased it away. "I know you will, Abs." He took a deep breath, trying to fight a wince when it, like sitting up, caused his ribs to ache. "Help me up, then. We've got a lot of ground to cover and not much time."

"You don't think they'll give up on us, do you?" Tony asked quietly, moving an arm behind Gibbs' shoulders to help him move.

Gibbs met his senior agent's gaze and shook his head slightly. "They're pissed, DiNozzo. We took their leader from them."

"Then we better make sure they don't take ours from us," Tony muttered, glancing at Abby once more.

At the forensic scientist's nod, the two of them heaved him to his feet and the trio started walking again.

****

They covered far more ground far quicker with Gibbs conscious than they had with him a deadweight between them but his ability to stay awake didn't last as long as they would've liked. Abby felt him gradually get heavier and heavier until his feet were dragging on the ground and she and Tony were carrying him completely.

His breathing was becoming more and more laboured and the glance she darted at Tony told her he knew it, too.

"I can't see any blood," she said after a while, shifting Gibbs' arm over her shoulders. "That means internal injuries."

"It could be a concussion, maybe bruised ribs," Tony replied, his answer nowhere near as comforting as he'd hoped it would. Even he blanched when he heard his words, knowing either condition wasn't good news. "He'll be fine, Abby. He's strong."

"Like an ox," she muttered.

"Like a bear," Tony corrected.

"Like a fox," Abby countered, a small smile beginning to play on her lips.

"Like a lion," Tony continued, giving her a wink in return.

"Like a mule," Abby sighed, a look of exasperated affection passing over her features.

"Well, he's as stubborn as one, so I'll give you that." Tony gave her a grin, their word game coming to an end as quickly as it had begun though leaving them both in slightly improved spirits. Improved spirits that started to die down when the seriousness of the situation began to sink in once more. "You know, I was thinking about what Gibbs said..."

Abby looked down just in time to avoid stumbling over an exposed tree root. "What part of it?"

Tony hesitated for a moment and she glanced up in time to see the indecision flash over his face. "The part about one of us going ahead." He continued quickly at the protest he could see forming on her lips. "Think about it, Abs. The others will have realised we're late but they won't be able to track us because you don't have a signal and my phone's broken. They won't know what road we were on because we took one of Gibbs' infamous shortcuts and even if they did, we're miles away from the car by now. If one of us can get a little further ahead, get a signal and make the call..."

"One of us meaning me," she interrupted with an arched eyebrow. "Leaving you and Gibbs alone to defend yourselves against De Lang's men if they catch up with you. Well, leaving you to defend both him and you."

"I'm armed, Abs, and I'm a good shot. Maybe not as good as our trained sniper here, but I'm good enough."

"So am I," Abby countered. At the doubtful look he couldn't quite mask, she turned her head, staring straight ahead of her. "I know you might think of me as a liability because I'm stuck in a lab all day but I know how to fire a gun, Tony. I've done it before."

Careful to keep his voice gentle, not wanting her to take his words in any way other than in the spirit they were intended, Tony wished she'd turn her head and look at him again. "It's different when you're not in the lab, Abby. It's different when you're firing at people who'll probably be firing back."

"I know," she muttered, refusing to look at him. "I've done that before, too."

"What?" Shock coloured his voice and Tony almost stumbled, his feet working quickly to regain his balance. "When?"

"I'd like to know the answer to that, too." The voice came from between them and both Abby and Tony stopped instantly, working together to lower him to the floor again. Gibbs' cool gaze settled on Abby's face and Tony noted how she struggled to meet his eyes. "First, though, I want to know what you two were arguing about."

"We weren't arguing," Abby protested, her gaze meeting Tony's fleetingly. "Tony just had a dumb idea, that's all."

Gibbs arched an eyebrow and turned his attention towards his agent, his second-in-command for all wants and purposes. "You had a dumb idea, DiNozzo? Really?"

Rolling his eyes, Tony shrugged in response to Gibbs' look. "I was just telling Abby I thought she should go ahead and see if she could get a signal on her phone. We're not getting anywhere fast and in case you two haven't noticed, it's getting colder by the minute and we've got no food or water."

Abby tilted her head up, eyeing the sky warily. "Looks like snow," she said with a shiver that wasn't entirely exaggerated. Now that Tony mentioned it, she did feel cold despite the winter coat she'd chosen to wear over her court suit that morning. Tony and Gibbs were suitably protected against the elements but if it snowed, she knew none of their coats would offer enough protection. "At least then the water problem will be solved," she finished practically. "I'm not going on ahead without you, Tony. End of story."

"It'd improve our odds of getting through this," Tony argued insistently. "You could go ahead and get help..."

"Or she could go ahead, get caught by De Lang's men and get dead," Gibbs suggested grimly. He caught Tony's eye and softened his expression on seeing the shock there. "I know, you didn't think of that, DiNozzo, but it's a possibility we've got to consider. If Abby goes on ahead, you go with her. No arguments. Neither of you are going anywhere on your own."

"And since we're not leaving you on your own, neither of us are going anywhere full stop." Abby's voice was faintly triumphant even though her expression was troubled as she looked up at the ominous clouds in the sky above. "I really think it's going to snow," she said quietly.

Tony took a moment to study the sky, too, before nodding slowly. "That we can agree on. We should try and find somewhere to hole up in case it does. Some kind of building would be good but anything to take shelter under would do." He shook his head. "I'm kind of sorry McBoy-Scout's not here."

"You're doing just fine, Tony," Gibbs responded calmly. When his agent and his forensic specialist looked at him in surprise at the open praise, they found him taking small, shallow breaths with his eyes closed. His brow was furrowed, his face lined and almost haggard in appearance. "We'll keep going till there's a signal on the phone, then we'll take cover and wait."

Whether they'd be waiting for rescue, to be found by De Lang's people or for the weather to pass, neither Abby nor Tony knew for sure.

"Are you sure you can go on, Boss? You don't look so good."

One of Gibbs' eyes opened to stare blandly at Tony. "You're not fresh from a GQ cover yourself, DiNozzo."

Abby tried, and failed, to hide a small smile. "Neither of you are, but what he meant was that you're injured, Gibbs. Bad concussion if not internal injuries and we probably shouldn't be moving you as much as we have done."

"Thanks for the assessment, Nurse Sciuto," the edge was taken from his sarcastic quip when he stared at each of them in badly concealed concern. "You're both hurt, too."

Neither Tony nor Abby met his gaze. They hadn't discussed their own injuries, preferring to pretend like they didn't exist, and both hated being called on it by the one person neither of them could lie to comfortably.

A loud noise in the direction from which they'd come startled them as much as the birds that flew through the trees, squawking in protest. Tony was up on his feet in an instant, his gun in his hand, pointed in the same general direction. Abby stayed crouched beside Gibbs, keeping her body between his and the potential threat, watching Tony with a worried expression on her face.

After a few moments of tense silence, Tony gradually relaxed his stance and returned to his crouching position beside his friends. "We should get going," he said quietly, returning his gun to its holster. "Just in case they're still behind us."

Gibbs said nothing but took the hands they offered him, gripping them firmly as they helped him to his feet. He felt frustrated at his helplessness when they each eased one of his arms over their shoulders; feeling like a hindrance and liability to the people he cared for was foreign to him and just as unpleasant as he'd suspected it would be.

Once more, the three of them started walking in solemn silence.

****

The snow started to fall less than twenty minutes after their break. The three walked even slower, huddling together for warmth against the snow and bitter wind that accompanied it. Another twenty minutes and each of them were feeling the effects of the freezing weather. Abby shivered as she reached into her coat pocket for her phone, wishing she'd thought to wear gloves and a scarf that morning. She glanced down at the display of her phone, snowflakes clinging to her eyelashes, making it harder to read.

At first, she thought she'd read it wrong.

When she realised she hadn't, she stopped walking, forcing Tony and Gibbs to do the same.

"Abby?"

"Abs?"

Both men looked at her in worried concern but she shook her head, the beginnings of a smile playing about on her chapped lips. She loved them both, Abby thought fiercely, looking between the two and then back at her cell phone display. They were a family, and no one was going to take them away from her.

"We've got a signal," she announced, her eyes bright, her nose and cheeks red. "I can send them a text message, get them tracing the signal. I'd call but it might kill the battery and they wouldn't be able to trace the phone if it's dead..."

Obvious relief passed over Tony's face and he closed his eyes momentarily. "Get it sent, Abs, and we'll find somewhere to bed down till they get here."

Gibbs, too exhausted from his efforts at staying conscious to speak, just gave her a tired nod.

Her fingers felt clumsy and uncoordinated and it took three attempts at beating the cold numbness till she hit the right characters and had a message that made some sort of sense.

'Car hit by gang. Gibbs hurt. Send help. A x'

Abby hit send, holding her breath until the 'message sent successfully' text appeared on the small screen. She let out her breath in a relief sigh that turned the air in front of her into a white mist and gave her companions a smile that said it all.

Help was – hopefully - on the way.

****

It wasn't the Hilton but it would do for a short space of time, Tony thought as he stood back to survey his handiwork. His coat was only just visible beneath the snow that continued to fall but it would keep most of the frozen ice from getting through the branches and into the den-like space he and Abby had created within the patch of bushes they'd found.

He checked it over again to make sure it wasn't too noticeable to anyone passing by and did a last minute scan of the ground at his feet. The falling snow had covered their footprints, leaving no visible tracks for any pursuers to follow which was a small but welcome mercy. He was picked his way through the snow lightly, trying not to make any indents deep enough to be noticed and crawled under the bush into the small clearing where Abby and Gibbs were waiting.

There was very little room to move but none of them were complaining. The enforced closeness would help keep him and Abby warm since they would be going without their coats, and they in turn could help keep Gibbs warm who, despite his best efforts to hide it, was shivering with the cold, his teeth chattering noisily when he forgot to clench them together.

Tony had barely made it inside before they heard the sound of voices, all three of them tensing as they strained to hear above the wind whipping through the branches.

"I know they came this way," a familiar voice insisted. "They can't be that far in front."

"If they're not far in front, we took a wrong turn somewhere," another said sarcastically.

"What does it matter?" chimed in a third. "It's cold. They're gonna freeze to death anyway. We've been walking for hours and it's gonna take at least that long to find our way back to the car."

There was a slight scuffle and the sound of someone being hit. "We were told we had to take 'em out. That's what we're gonna do."

"We already took them out!" The third person spoke up, his voice muffled as though he were clutching his nose. "They're gonna die out here regardless. That should be good enough."

"Good enough for putting the boss's son behind bars?" The second man sounded scornful. "You really think the boss will see it that way? He wants them dead and he wants proof that the deed's been done. If you're not man enough to do it, you're not fit to be one of us."

"Stop arguing, both of you. If they hear us, they'll hide." The first man sounded exasperated, frustrated. "Shut up and keep walking. We've got a job to do and no one's leaving till it's done."

The voices faded as they walked further away, all three occupants of the den heaving sighs of relief when they were sure they were alone once more.

"They'll be here soon," Abby said optimistically between her chattering teeth, meeting Tony's gaze as she cuddled further into Gibbs' side for warmth. "It won't take McGee long to track the signal, then Ziva will lead the troops and we'll be fine."

"We will," Tony agreed with a soft, appreciative grin in her direction. He, too, moved closer to Gibbs, noting that the older man's eyes were closed once more though his breathing was too erratic for him to be sleeping. "Won't be long before we're tucked up warm with blankets and hot chocolate. And bourbon for the boss-man."

They lapsed into silence for a few moments and, when he felt it'd gone on too long, Tony cleared his throat. "Need to stay away," he muttered, the cold numbing his already exhausted body further. "We should talk, keep our minds busy."

Abby stifled a yawn and nodded her agreement, nudging Gibbs gently until he grunted in agreement. "We should play a word game."

"Word association?"

"Why not?"

Gibbs cracked one eye open. "If we have to."

"We do," Abby insisted with a pointed look at Tony. "I'll start with... Ducky."

Tony didn't hesitate, putting on a fake – not to mention poor – Scottish accent as he answered. "Scotland."

"England." Gibbs rolled his eyes at the impression and made no attempt at doing one of his own.

"Britain," Abby continued thoughtfully.

"Bad guys." Tony's eyebrows lifted innocently at the glances his companion shot him. "What? The bad guys are always British! That, or Russian," he added thoughtfully.

With a long-suffering sigh they all knew was mostly for show, Gibbs continued gamely. "Good guys."

"NCIS Agents," Abby's answer was immediate and brought fond grins to the faces of both of her companions.

Tony paused for a moment, his brow furrowed. "The Navy."

"Marines." Both Abby and Tony rolled their eyes at Gibbs' answer but he pretended not to notice.

Abby smirked smugly, sensing a victory as she looked to Tony. "Semper Fi."

"Geez, Abs, how do I follow that?" Tony complained half-heartedly. "Fine, I'll start another round. Hmm... Oh, I know! James Bond!"

****

The game continued, getting more and more ridiculous the more exhausted they got. By the time Ziva David and Tim McGee found them, leading a cavalry made up almost entirely of NCIS Agents who'd volunteered to forego going to their warm homes in favour of searching out their mission colleagues, Abby was in the lead with five wins under her belt, Gibbs following with three and Tony bringing up the rear with two, though he'd insist later that he'd been "so close" to winning the last round and tying with Gibbs.

De Lang's men were apprehended by the searching NCIS agents. Gibbs, Tony and Abby barely acknowledged the news as they were loaded into an awaiting ambulance. Gibbs lay on a gurney opposite them, his eyes closed as he breathed in through the oxygen mask the paramedics had secured over his mouth, his body relaxed as the painkillers he'd been given worked their magic.

Abby leaned against Tony, her head on his shoulder as they watched their boss and friend in silence, both exhausted but relieved beyond measure that the ordeal was over.

"At least we're all in the back this time," Abby murmured sleepily, her eyes sliding shut before she could witness the amused grin that curled up Tony's mouth.

He brushed his lips against the top of her head, his arm wrapped securely around her and let his own eyes close as the ambulance began to move. "At least we're all together," he mumbled, exhaling deeply before he, too, drifted off into a healing sleep.

****

End.


End file.
